Custom Reporting in Lease Management Software: A Comparison Guide

When it comes to lease accounting, precision matters. But so does flexibility. Finance and real estate teams need to do more than just stay compliant — they need tools that reflect how their business actually works.

That’s where custom reporting comes in.

Whether you’re managing leases across multiple entities, applying different discount rates per lease, or preparing audit-ready reports with unique formatting requirements, rigid software platforms can get in the way. The more complex your lease portfolio becomes, the more painful those limitations can be.

In this post, we’ll look at what “custom” really means in lease management software, why it matters, and how leading platforms stack up.

What Does “Custom” Really Mean in Lease Reporting?

Custom reporting doesn’t just mean picking from a few pre-set templates. For modern teams, it often includes:

• Entity-level reporting: Segment lease costs by business unit, region, or legal entity.
• Custom discount rates: Assign different incremental borrowing rates to specific leases.
• Editable reporting fields: Track lease attributes that matter to your business (e.g., asset type, location, internal owner).
• Flexible accounting treatments: Apply different standards where needed (ASC 842, IFRS 16, GASB 87).
• Non-traditional lease structures: Account for equipment leases with variable start/end dates or irregular payment terms.
• Custom depreciation logic: Handle asset classes with unique depreciation schedules.
• Export formats and data control: Generate reports for auditors, board decks, or internal systems in exactly the format you need.

These are must-haves for companies with even moderate complexity — but many lease management platforms still treat them as nice-to-haves.

How the Major Platforms Handle Customization

Not all lease management software is built to handle complex reporting or non-standard lease terms. Here’s how the major platforms stack up when it comes to customization and flexibility:

✖️ LeaseQuery

LeaseQuery focuses on compliance, but customization is limited.

• Minimal support for custom fields or per-lease discount rates
• Fixed reporting templates with little flexibility
• Multi-entity structures are hard to configure
• Requires manual workarounds and spreadsheets for advanced reporting

✖️ Visual Lease

Visual Lease offers more options than some, but customization often requires support.

• Limited in-app customization; advanced changes go through the services team
• Multi-entity reporting is available but not intuitive
• Predefined report formats make it difficult to tailor output
• Not ideal for fast-moving teams with unique reporting needs

✖️ Occupier

Occupier is best for simple portfolios but lacks support for complex lease configurations.

• Some basic customization options
• Primarily designed for real estate, not equipment or irregular lease terms
• Limited support for unique depreciation schedules or reporting layers
• Best suited for single-entity, early-stage companies

✔️ Spacebase

Spacebase was built for complexity — without making it complex for your team.

• Full support for custom fields, per-lease discount rates, and multi-entity structures
• Easily model non-traditional lease terms and unique depreciation schedules
• Build, filter, and export custom reports directly in the app — no support tickets needed
• Designed to adapt to your business, not the other way around

Why Customization Matters — Especially for Equipment Leases

Not all leases look the same — especially when it comes to equipment.

Many companies lease assets like manufacturing equipment, fleet vehicles, or IT infrastructure under contracts that don’t follow traditional real estate terms. Start dates might depend on delivery schedules. End dates might vary depending on usage. Payment schedules can be irregular. And depreciation can follow a logic that doesn’t match typical lease straight-lining.

If your software can’t handle that? You’re back to spreadsheets.

Spacebase supports flexible modeling of these types of leases, including:

• Setting non-uniform start and end dates
• Applying custom depreciation schedules by asset type
• Tracking lifecycle events for leased equipment
• Assigning variable payment terms

How Spacebase Handles Custom Reporting

Spacebase was built to handle the complexity that other platforms shy away from.

Out of the box, you can:

• Add unlimited custom fields to any lease record
• Assign different discount rates per lease or portfolio
• Segment leases across multiple entities or departments
• Handle irregular lease schedules and custom depreciation policies
• Generate reports tailored to your accounting processes — without needing to contact support

And because the interface is designed with usability in mind, your team won’t need training or technical help to get it done.

Final Thoughts: Choose Software That Works the Way You Do

If your lease portfolio has any level of complexity — whether that’s multiple business units, equipment with non-standard lease terms, or unique depreciation needs — flexible reporting isn’t optional. It’s essential.

Spacebase helps you move faster by giving you control over your lease data and reporting structure, without forcing you into rigid templates or support queues.

Ready to see how customizable lease management can be?
Request a demo — and experience reporting that fits your business, not the other way around.

Brooke Colglazier

Marketing Manager